Law Enforcement

Operation and
Planning
With Crime Mapping
Police Operation
Police is a body of armed men, which as an institution,
can exercise its duties by armed physical forces to
preserve peace and order, detection of crime, and the
execution of laws. They are a body of offi cers representing
the civil authority of the government, and are responsible
for maintaining public order and safety, enforcing the law,
and preventing, detecting, and investigating criminal
activities. Police operations are defi ned as the job duties,
responsibilities, and activities that law enforcement agents
complete in the fi eld.
 Categories of Police Operations
According to the Revised PNP Police Operational Procedure (2021) the following are the
categories of Police Operations in the Philippine:

1. Patrol Operations - It is the most basic police function and known as the backbone
of policing.

2. Law Enforcement Operations - This includes service of warrant of arrest,

implementation of search warrant, enforcement of visitorial powers of the Chiefs of
Police, and other anti-criminality operations.
3. Internal Security Operations- This includes counterterrorism
operations and similar operations against other threat groups that are
conducted to ensure internal security.

4. Public Safety Operations - This includes critical incident management procedures, search,
rescue and retrieval operations, hostage situation, civil disturbance management operation,
management of health hazards and other operations that promote public safety.

5. Special Police Operations - This includes high-risk checkpoint and roadblock operation, police
assistance in the implementation of order from the court and other quasi-judicial bodies, security
to major and special events, aircraft hijacking operations, visit, board, search and seizure of
marine vessels, and similar police operations that are conducted by police units with specialized
training on the peculiarity of the mission or purpose.
6. Investigation Operations - This includes investigation of crime or incident,
Scene of the Crime Operations (SOCO), administrative investigation and other
investigative work necessary to determine facts and circumstances for filing cases
criminally or administratively.

7. Police Community Relations - This includes three interrelated dimensions to

accomplish its mission namely: community affairs and development, public
information, and information development operations to forge partnership and
strengthen collaboration and linkages with the community.
 The Philippine National Police (PNP) is
the civilian national police force of the
Philippines (Offi cial Gazette, n.d.). It is
a community and service-oriented
Philippine agency responsible for the

National Police maintenance of peace and order and

public safety. It is national in scope
and civilian in character administered
and controlled by a national police
commission (RA 8551, 1998, Section
2).
 Powers and Functi ons of PNP –
The PNP have the following powers and functi ons (RA 6975, 1990,
Secti on 24):

1. Enforce all laws and 2. Maintain peace and 3. Investigate and prevent 4. Exercise the general powers
order and take all crimes, effect the arrest of to make arrest, search and
ordinances relative to the criminal offenders, bring seizure in accordance with the
protection of lives and necessary steps to offenders to justice and assist Constitution and pertinent
properties; ensure public safety; in their prosecution; laws;

5. Detain an arrested person

for a period not beyond what is 6. Issue licenses for the 7. Supervise and control the training
and operations of security agencies 8. Perform such other
prescribed by law, informing possession of firearms and issue licenses to operate duties and exercise all
the person so detained of all and explosives in security agencies, and to security
guards and private detectives, for
other functions as may be
his rights under the provided by law.
Constitution;
accordance with law; the practice of their professions; and
PNP Operational Guidelines
According to the Revised PNP Police Operati onal Procedure
(2021), all PNP personnel shall respect and uphold the human
rights and dignity of all persons. Regardless of the type of
functi on to be performed and/or police operati ons to be
conducted, all PNP personnel must know by heart and shall
comply with and apply the following principles and procedures
(POP Manual, 2021):
 •To Respect Human Rights and
• To Serve and Protect- The
Dignity of Person- All PNP
responsibility of every police
personnel shall respect and
officer is to serve the public and
uphold the human rights and
protect life and property.
dignity of all persons at all times.
 In all planned police operati ons, the team
leader of the operati ng team/s shall
secure a Pre-Operati on Clearance prior to
Requirements the conduct of operati on. This clearance
must be approved by their
of Police
Chief/Commander/ Head of Offi ce/Unit
Operations and must be submitt ed at the Operati ons
Secti on/ Division of the concerned
operati ng police units for record purposes
(POP Manual, 2021, Secti on 2-1)).
 1. With marked police vehicle;
The basic requirements of
police operati ons such as
2. Led by a Police Commissioned Officer (PCO) or the most
but not limited to arrest, senior Police Non-Commissioned Officer (PNCO) in the
absence or unavailability of a PCO; and
search and seizure,
checkpoint, roadblocks,
and civil disturbance 3. With personnel in prescribed police uniform except for
covert operatives when serving warrant of arrest provided
management are personnel in uniform shall be present during the arrest

conducted as follows:
4. With the use of Body Worn Cameras (BWCs) and/or
Alternative Recording Devices (ARDs) during the conduct of
searches and arrests.
Use of Force Policy

In the lawful performance of duty, a police offi cer shall use necessary
and reasonable force to accomplish his/her mandated task of
enforcing the law and maintaining peace and order. However, a police
offi cer is not required to aff ord the off ender/s att acking him/her the
opportunity for a fair or equal struggle. The necessity and
reasonableness of the force employed will depend upon the following
(POP Manual, 2021, Secti on 2-4):
 • Size and other
•Nature and
circumstances to
•The number of aggressors, characteristic of the •Physical condition,
include the place and
weapon used, occasion of the assault.

During confrontation with an armed offender, only such necessary and reasonable force shall be applied
as would be sufficient to overcome the aggression by the offender; subdue the clear and imminent
danger posed by him/her; or to justify the force/act under the principles of self-defense, defense of
relative, defense of stranger or fulfillment of duty. The excessive use of force to arrest or immobilize the
suspect during police operation is prohibited (POP Manual, 2021, Section 2-4)
Three Approaches on The Use of Force Conti nuum

The Force Conti nuum' is a linear-progressive decision-making

process which displays the array of police, reasonable
response commensurate to the level of suspect/law off ender's
resistance to eff ect compliance, arrest and other law
enforcement acti ons. There are three (3) approaches on the
Use of Force Conti nuum, they are (POP Manual, 2021, Secti on
2-4, 2.9):
1. Non-Lethal Approach - This involves the police presence in crime-prone areas and the
employment of activities or actions to persuade and/or request cooperation of people
particularly suspects and law offenders to police instructions and other control efforts.

2. Less Lethal Approach - This involves the employment of less lethal equipment' that does not cause
serious injury and/or death and that less physical measures have been tried and deemed inappropriate
purposely to ensure cooperation, compliance or surrender. The age, gender and health condition of
offenders shall be considered before the employment of less lethal equipment.

3. Lethal Approach - This involves the employment of lethal equipment usually as a last resort. Lethal
force will only be employed when all other approaches have been exhausted and found to be insufficient
to thwart the life-threatening actions or omissions posed by armed suspect or law offender. This approach
carries with it the greater responsibility as it may result in severe injury and serious bodily harm and/or
death.
 Use of firearm During Police Operations

The use of a fi rearm is justi fi ed if the offender poses an

imminent danger of causing death or injury to the police
offi cer or other persons. The use of fi rearms is also
justi fi ed under the doctrines of self-defense, defense of a
relati ve, and defense of a stranger. The police shall not
use warning shots during police operati on except when
the police offi cer is outnumbered and overpowered, and
his/her life and limb is in imminent danger.
A moving vehicle and its occupants shall not be
fired upon except when its occupants pose
imminent danger of causing death or injury to
the police offi cer or any other person, and that
the use of firearm does not create any danger
to the public and outweighs the likely benefits
of its non-use. In firing at a moving vehicle, the
following parameters should be considered:
  The intent of the suspect/s to harm the police officer
or other persons;
 The capability of the suspect/s to harm with certainty
the police officer or other persons; and
 Accessibility or the proximity of the suspect/s from
the police officer and other persons.
A police officer who fires his/her service firearm or
weapon during a confrontation with an offender or
offenders must submit an incident report outlining the
circumstances necessitating the use of his/her firearm.
Patrol
Patrol is the action of traversing a district or beat or of going the
rounds along a chain of guards for observation or the
maintenance of security (Merriam-Webster, n.d.). Police patrols
play an important role in public service by responding to
incidents, deterring, and preventing crimes. It can give a sense of
security to people who need protection and discourage those
who may commit crimes in the absence of a patrol. The goals and
objectives of police patrol include crime prevention, criminal
apprehension, law enforcement, order maintenance, public
services, and traffic enforcement (Zhang, Y., and Brown, D. E.,
2013).
Patrol Guidelines
According to the Revised PNP Police Operational Procedure (2021)
the following are the guidelines in conducting patrol operations:
1. Conduct briefing before and debriefing after patrol operations
2. Perform firearm and equipment check prior to dispatch.
3. Observe precautionary measures and personal safety while on
patrol;
4. Plan out patrol routes based on prevailing crime trends and
patterns;
5. Observe defensive driving and follow traffic rules and regulations;
6. Establish good rapport with people on your beat and be familiar with all the people
in the community;
7. Patrol members must be always on the look-out for indications of vices and other
illegal activities on their beat;
8. Patrol members must be knowledgeable of all conditions, events and details of
places on their beat;
9. Be observant of people, places, situations or conditions and develop an inquisitive
attitude especially if the subject appears to be slightly out of the ordinary;
10. Keep under close observation actions of juveniles, troublemakers / agitators and
the mentally ill/retarded persons and report information to the concerned agency for
appropriate action;
11. When requiring proof of identification from any person, let him/her hand it over to
you and;
12. Patrol members must inform the tactical operations center before responding to
any incident.
Patrol Duties (POP Manual, 2021, Rule 1.2):
The following are the duties during the conduct of patrol operations
1. Patrol Supervisors
a. Make a patrol plan with the following details:
 Area Coverage: safe haven, ambush areas and crime prone areas;
 Organizational detail of personnel;
 Duration;
 Stand-by points; and
 Route plan

b. Designate members of the patrol team/s;

c. Conduct personnel and equipment check;
d. Conduct briefing prior to dispatch by disseminating any orders, directives
or instructions from the Chief of Police (COP) or higher authorities and new
policy or guidelines being implemented by the PNP Organization;
e. Render hourly report of personnel location and situation through
radio/telephone/cellphone to Police Community Precinct (PCP)/ Station
Headquarters Tactical Operation Center (TOC);
f. Render after-patrol report duly signed by duty supervisor. PCP
Commanders shall collate and submit significant details to the Station Patrol
Supervisor, who in turn, will submit the same to the Provincial/ District Patrol
Supervisor; and
g. Conduct debriefing immediately after the completion of patrol duties.
2. Patrol Officers
a. Attend the roll call formation before his /her Tour of Duty Attend the r and
likewise attend the after four of Dulyformation for debriefing;
b. Patrol the assigned beats, observe and check suspicious People,
structures/buildings, compounds and vehicles:
c. Observe and monitor public gatherings, prevent disorders and disperse
unlawful assemblies;
d. Inspect and/or conduct surveillance in various business establishments
and other installations and remove hazards to public safety;
e. Check suspicious vehicles (private, public, or commercial/ delivery
vehicles) in the course of their patrol;
f. Report occurrences and conditions which relate to crime, public peace, order and
safety;
g. Prevent crimes and arrest criminal offenders;
h. Conduct regular visitations, dialogues/consultations with the residents and other
stakeholders;
i. Assist personnel of responsible agencies/unit in facilitating the flow of traffic at busy
intersections/roads within his/her Area of Responsibility (AOR), assist and provide
pedestrian information such as directions and street locations;
j. Respond to calls, entertain complaints, initiate the investigation and protection of
the crime scene and minimize the after-effects of accidents, fires and other
catastrophes;
k. Wear the prescribed patrol uniform;
l. Have the necessary equipment; and
m. Strictly observe the "Buddy System” during the patrol operations.